An environmentalist super PAC spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to boost the Democrat running in a New York congressional special election to fill the seat left vacant by former Republican Rep. George Santos, Federal Election Commission (FEC) records show.
LCV Victory Fund, a super PAC affiliated with the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), has spent over $700,000 to support Democratic nominee Tom Suozzi and oppose Republican nominee Mazi Melesa Pilip in New York’s 3rd Congressional District ahead of Tuesday’s special election, according to FEC records.
The seat became vacant after the House voted to expel Santos in December with key support from some Republican members.
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LCV Victory Fund spent $20,257 on advertisements opposing Pilip and $702,721 on operations supporting Suozzi, FEC records show. The supportive efforts were spent on door-to-door canvassing, dedicated staff time and consulting services.
“At door after door, people in the district continue to tell us they are worried about climate disasters like flooding and want a representative who won’t be a part of the chaos caused by MAGA Republicans,” LCV Victory Fund Deputy National Field Director Erin Phillips said of the special election.
LCV counts itself as part of a “a robust, inclusive and anti-racist climate movement,” according to its website. The group wants the United States to “decarbonize” by 2050.
Pilip is a Nassau County legislator and an Israel Defense Force veteran, according to her government bio. Suozzi previously represented New York’s 3rd District in the House between 2017 and 2023, leaving Congress to pursue an ill-fated run for New York governor.
LCV Victory Fund has spent more in independent expenditures on the New York 3rd District special election than it did on any other House race in the 2022 election cycle, according to FEC records.
Democrats had outspent Republicans nearly three-to-one on advertisements in the special election as of Jan. 25. Suozzi leads Pilip 48% to 44% among likely voters, according to a Siena College poll conducted between Feb.3 and Feb. 6.
“Voters are eager to move past the toxic environment in the House that George Santos contributed to, and another supporter of the MAGA agenda who won’t hold Big Oil and other polluters accountable is not going to cut it,” LCV Victory Fund Senior VP for Campaigns Pete Maysmith said in a press release.
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